Michael B Jordan wanted to play roles meant for white actors after Fruitvale Station

Michael B Jordan wanted to play roles meant for white actors after Fruitvale Station

Michael B Jordan, the 31-year-old actor who played Killmonger in Black Panther, told fellow actor Issa Rae after the Ryan Coogler-directed film he made a decision to not audition for roles which were specifically written for black people.

Black Panther star Michal B Jordan has said that post his criticially-acclaimed film Fruitvale Station he only wanted to play roles that were meant for white actors. During Variety’s Actors on Actors series, the 31-year-old actor told fellow actor Issa Rae after the Ryan Coogler-directed film he made a decision to not audition for roles which were specifically written for black people.

“I said, I don’t want it. I want to only go for, like, (roles written for) white males. That’s it. Me playing that role is going to make it what it is. I don’t want any pre-bias on the character,” Jordan said. Rae, best known for creating and starring in HBO’s Insecure, discussed the positive change in Hollywood and recalled how she was sent roles she was not sure she would be able to get because of her race.

“If it were a leading woman of a certain type, I just knew the type that they would go for, so I’m just not going to even bother,” Rae said. “People have been receptive. Even just the confidence that a movie like ‘Black Panther’ and other films by other filmmakers of colour, that have come out, have really just changed what people perceive as a leading lady, as the beautiful person, the daring or the bold action-adventure type. That just feels so dope to me,” she added.